U.S. Pat. No. 4,834,731 (Nowak et al.) discloses an ostomy appliance having a relatively rigid convex pressure ring for causing stomal protrusion for patients with flush or recessed stomas, thereby aiding in the discharge of effluent directly into a collection pouch and helping to prolong the effectiveness of the adhesive seal between a faceplate and peristomal skin surfaces. It has also been known to provide such a faceplate with a rigid convex pressure ring having an inside diameter substantially larger than a patient""s stoma and with an adhesive skin barrier pad or wafer that covers the convex surface and extends inwardly over the opening of the pressure ring, with the adhesive pad having a small starter opening so that, with the use of scissors, a patient or caregiver may easy enlarge and shape the opening in the pad to match the outline of the patient""s stoma. Such a faceplate is commonly referred to as a xe2x80x9ccut-to-fitxe2x80x9d faceplate, meaning that the opening in the adhesive area layer may be sized and shaped at the time of application to meet a patient""s needs. A downside is that such a faceplate construction requires the rigid convex pressure ring to have an opening substantially larger then a patient""s stoma in order to allow enlargement and shaping of the starter opening in the adhesive pad, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the convex ring in producing stomal protrusion.
Rigid convex pressure rings in the form of adapters for the purpose of converting planar faceplates into convexly-curved faceplates are also known. Reference may be had to U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,625 (Holmberg), U.S. Pat. No. 4,219,023 (Galindo), U.S. Pat. No. 5,163,930 (Blum), U.S. Pat. No. 5,004,464 (Leise), and U.S. Pat. No. 6,210,384 (B1) (Cline). International Publication WO 93/04646 (Olsen) also discloses such an adapter.
This invention is concerned with a convex faceplate, particularly one of the cut-to-fit type, and a snap-in insert for such a faceplate. The insert supports and thereby braces the portion of the adhesive barrier pad that extends over or across the opening of the convex pressure ring. If desired, the insert may itself provide a convexly-curved support wall for substantially increasing the convexity of the faceplate to which the insert is attached.
The support wall of the insert is provided with an opening which may be pre-sized and shaped during manufacture to approximate any of various sizes and shapes of patient""s stomas. Such a pre-formed opening may, by way of example, be circular or oval in shape, it being recognized that a substantial portion of patients have stomas generally oval-shaped in outline. Alternatively, the opening in the support wall of the insert may constitute a starter opening that may then be enlarged and shaped with scissors by a user or caregiver to match the outline of a patient""s stoma. In either case, the insert, after being snapped into place within the opening of a faceplate""s convex pressure ring, may be rotated within that opening to ensure proper orientation of the insert in relation to that patient""s stoma.
Briefly, the insert is formed from a stiff but nevertheless flexible and shaped-recoverable polymeric material and has a cylindrical rim and an apertured bodyside support wall. The rim has a pair of axially-spaced outwardly-projecting annular retention ribs sized and positioned to engage the bodyside and pouchside surfaces of the rigid pressure ring of a convex faceplate. The ribs therefore lock the insert against axial movement relative to the convex pressure ring while at the same time allowing relative rotation of the parts. The support wall of the insert is apertured with the aperture serving either as a starter opening, which may then be enlarged and shaped with scissors, or as a pre-formed opening that is cut during manufacture to approximate any of a number of stoma sizes and shapes. In one embodiment of the invention, the thin, flexible support wall is convexly curved to supplement or increase the convexity already provided by the rigid pressure ring of the faceplate, whereas in another embodiment the support wall of the insert is generally planar.
Other features, advantages, and objects of the invention will become apparent from the specification and drawings.